April is finally here! As teachers, we can see the light at the end of the tunnel for the 2022 school year. Spring breaks are happening, we are awaiting summer vacations, and we are beginning to prepare for the end-of-year festivities. Let’s hang in there for a few more months and end the year on a high note as we plan for an exciting 2023.
As national FFA advisor, I hope you can feel the importance we are placing on the adopted Value Statements. “I stand solid in my part of that inspiring task,” keeping the statements front and center. The Value Statements will transform how we operate as a national organization. I remain committed to challenging each teacher in helping me carry out this task. Our words of encouragement to our students and members will ultimately make the difference in ensuring FFA is for all.
We discussed “Respect” and “Embrace” in the last two Owls e-newsletters. Now let’s dive into the action of “Welcome.” I believe “Welcome” is a more outwardly action. For example, our Opening Ceremony places at the doors of our meetings the position of Sentinel. At the core of being a Sentinel is the action of “welcoming” our members and friends.
As a young teacher, I was often tuned into making sure our officers could recite their parts of the Opening Ceremony with precision and passion. In doing so, I often forgot to make sure we were being intentional with our actions. “Making sure that friends who pass through this door are welcomed.”
Welcoming involves the task of outreach — reaching out and checking with our members and guests to make sure they feel a part of our organization on the local, state, and national levels. The intentionality comes in coaching and encouraging our members to make our chapters a welcoming environment. We can do this through several strategies:
- Challenging our members to go out into our membership with the open hand of friendship — the handshake.
- Taking the temperature of our members through surveys aimed at our welcoming status.
- Having heart-to-heart conversations with our members about our need to be inclusive.
I have had the unique opportunity to travel to four state conventions this year, with many more to come. Thank you, Utah, Oregon, California and Idaho, for the awesome experience of meeting your members. During my attendance at these conventions, I intended for my actions to be “welcoming.” I understand and respect the position of national FFA advisor, but I want my actions in that position to be a role model for our members and teachers. I want to exude approachability so that I feel welcomed and that I am welcoming. Commit alongside me to be more welcoming as individuals and as an organization.
Join again next month as we take “Welcome” to the next level — “Cultivate!”
Here by the Owl,
James
Dr. James Woodard
National FFA Advisor
